Finland-based food group Valio has acquired local wholesale business Heinon Tukku for an undisclosed sum.

Tapping into what it describes as a “long-term megatrend”, of eating out and takeaway, Valio, owned by Finnish dairy farmers, said its goal is to be an “even broader partner for restaurant and café professionals”.

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Heinon Tukku stocks about 30,000 products, most of which are fresh food and ingredients. It also sells frozen food, beverages, cooking utensils and tableware.

It distributes its products to many restaurants and cafes in the Helsinki area and also has customers further afield.

The deal will create a new business unit for Valio serving serves professional kitchens and the food industry.

Tuomas Sorri, who is sales director of Valio Food Solutions, will lead the new division. Sorri said: "Valio and Heinon Tukku truly complement each other. Heinon Tukku has a selection of thousands of products, from fresh vegetables to napkins and [has] customers, especially restaurants and cafés, in the Helsinki metropolitan area. Valio, on the other hand, comes with the country's largest distribution network and especially public-sector customers.

"Together, we are a broader partner for those restaurant operators for whom quality, domesticity, an in-depth understanding of customer needs and delivery security are key factors."

Petri Heino, CEO of Heinku Tukku's parent company Tukkuheino, said: "Valio will become a good owner for Heinon Tukku. In this transaction, the parties' strengths complement each other and there is little overlap."

Heinon Tukku, which has been in existence for more than 120 years, and is one of Finland's largest wholesalers. Its typical annual turnover, pre-Covid-19, was in the order of EUR240m (US$289.9m).